Questions abound but answers are slow at surfacing about the release and impact of the shíshálh Nation Foundation Agreement addendum.
Provincial minister of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship and local MLA Randene Neill committed to help correct that in a March 3 email to Coast Reporter. Her promise: “to hold online information sessions to hear from people and answer questions." Her words were reminiscent of comments made to Coast Reporter when the updated agreement terms were announced on Jan. 29 but no dates or further details were provided in that correspondence.
The addendum, signed Aug. 16, 2024, by the Nation and the province, became public on Jan. 29, in a release that accompanied a formal announcement in Sechelt, according to the email. The province’s website states it is part of a “phased approach to long-term reconciliation, where the Foundation Agreement (signed in 2018) is renewed every five years, helps to create transformative change in a way that is predictable and transparent, and allows for learning to occur as shíshálh Nation and the Province’s relationship unfolds over time."
The Foundation Agreement grants a greater level of decision-making powers regarding lands and resources within the swiya to the Nation. The shíshálh are also to receive $104 million in provincial funding for economic development, culture and language, housing, implementation, environmental restoration, water infrastructure, as well as monitoring, enforcement, negotiations and environmental studies under the addendum.
Release timing and legalities of title changes questioned
The email did not respond to questions posed by Coast Reporter about the delay between the signing and the public release of the addendum and whether the 2024 provincial election played any role in that delay.
Similar questions and others were also put forward to Premier Eby by the Pender Harbour and Area Residents Association (PHARA) in a Feb. 16 letter. In addition, PHARA asked if “anyone was consulted in the negotiation of this agreement” and “will you commit to excluding private lands from any areas where Aboriginal title may be renegotiated." They also queried if Neill was aware that the addendum had been signed but not publicly released during her run to represent the riding in the 2024 provincial election.
PHARA respresentative Sean McAllister told Coast Reporter on March 5 that an acknowledgement of but no response to the letter had been received. The letter was copied to Neill and others including opposition leader John Rustad, and McAllister stated responses had no been received from any of those parties.
"The gravity of the situation is that they [the B.C. government] are going to negotiate Aboriginal title," he said. "They are going to negotiate exclusive decision making on a topic to be determined, we don't know what that is, so that is concerning because that goes above and beyond DRIPA [Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act]. There is no statutory framework that is coming from," he explained.
"Aboriginal title is what they did in Haida Gwaii. But they are not saying they are exempting any property or where this Aboriginal title is going to land, or where they are going to be negotiating it....If it is the same as Haida Gwaii, they gave every square inch of that to the Haida, under Aboriginal title and said we will protect fee simple.... Aboriginal title and fee simple are two diametrically opposed concepts and they cannot exist together... for something like my property, what is that going to mean... who is going to tax me, who is going to approve my zoning, who is going to tell me who I can sell to and not sell to?
"It could have a dramatic effect on property values. That is what is very troubling from my perspective. My home is at risk here, all of a sudden. It is a pen stroke away from having my title clouded by Aboriginal title."
Sections of the addendum were redacted in the copy that was made public. Clarity on the full text of those sections, along with the new focus by the province on negotiating with the Nation under the DRIPA and the timing of the release was questioned by Vaughan Palmer in a Feb. 22 Vancouver Sun editorial and by Justine Hunter on Feb. 29 in the Globe and Mail.
What has happened and what’s to come
Local elected officials attended a Nation celebration of the signing at its Long House at the end of February. In director’s reports at the Feb. 27 Sunshine Coast Regional District Board meeting, Chair Alton Toth and several other directors stated they enjoyed the event, with the chair commenting that he is “still learning about the Foundation Agreement."
In the email, the ministry stated, “The Province, through the Ministries of Water Land and Resource Stewardship and Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation, are working in partnership with shíshálh on possible upcoming engagement sessions to hear people and inform the community on the next steps.”
Neill echoing that sentiment in her comments in the message. “As a resident of the Sunshine Coast, I know firsthand how deeply invested this community is in the decisions that shape our future. I also understand people’s desires to be informed and engaged in these decisions. Government has to do better… My commitment is to improve transparency around these types of agreements to support public confidence in the work Government is doing together with communities — First Nations and non-First Nations alike. The renewal of the Foundation Agreement reflects our ongoing commitment to work in partnership with shíshálh and to engage meaningfully with local governments, interest holders and the public. Moving forward, Government will prioritize such engagement throughout the term of the renewal,” she wrote.
Following the Jan. 29 celebration, Coast Reporter asked to speak with shíshálh Nation leadership regarding the addendum. Those requests have been acknowledged but due to unforeseen circumstances, the interview has yet to be scheduled.
